Don’t stop Okorocha’s monumental projects One thing no one would deny is that the administration of Gov. Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has two cardinal programmes: education and infrastructural upgrade. This could be gleaned from the administration’s free education programme that traverses primary through secondary to the tertiary level. In addition, pupils and students in the state are paid monthly stipends to ginger them to attend classes regularly. Its policy on infrastructure has seen the administration re-constructing the Douglas House, the state’s seat of power in Owerri. It has also embarked on and completed some road and building projects as well as roundabouts. But there are still countless roads opened up by the administration in the three geo-political zones of the state which are yearning for completion. The administration obviously has good intention in opening up the roads more so when Imo is a land-logged state whose citizens and residents depend mainly on roads to move from one part to another. We commend the administration for this. But it is important to point out to the arrowheads of the administration that good intentions are not enough. There is no doubt that the roads are today in more deplorable conditions. Their conditions are worse than they were before their opening. Erosion has washed off the top soil of the roads thereby creating gullies and craters on them. This has made commuting a nightmarish experience. The citizens are presently gnashing their teeth preferring that the roads were left in their pre-Okorocha era. While the administration is yet to complete the road projects, the governor has made it clear that he would soon embark on what he termed monumental projects. The monumental projects include the 25-floor Akachi Hotel to be sited in Owerri; Prince Hotel in Orlu; and Princess Hotel in Okigwe. There are also the ongoing 305 classroom blocks in the 305 wards in the state; 27 general hospitals and 27 secretariat complexes in the 27 local council areas of the state. Equally, two of the three geo-political zones namely Orlu and Okigwe are to have standard FIFA-approved stadia before the end of the first term of the governor. Obviously, the administration is chewing much at the same time. And the question has been: Where is the fund to complete these projects and discharge other obligations of government? Granted that our governor is a man of faith going by his prophetic declaration that Imo is the richest state in the federation, will it not be good that the administration executes projects gradually instead of chewing much at same time and succeeding in not being able to swallow anything? The issue of quality is another vital area the administration has to look into. We note that some of the roads have become bad a year after their construction. Experts said some of the roads are just 2cm thick when they should have been up to 5cm. This has made some people to derisively call them China roads. China is known for flooding Nigeria with substandard products. Perhaps, it is the reduction in the cost per kilometre of road to N60million that has compelled contractors to construct roads without stone base and drains. Or could the use of unqualified contractors as some have alleged be responsible for the substandard road projects that dot the landscape? Whichever one it is, Imo State will be the better for it if the roads are durable. This will help the administration’s successor to pay attention to other needs of the state. A legislator, Bro. Stan Dara suggested during the last stakeholders meeting held at the temporary chambers of the state legislature that the governor back-pedals on the monumental projects. We will not be tempted to dance the same music with the honourable member more so when Okorocha insists that he wants to do more than former governor of the state, Chief Sam Mbakwe of blessed memory. Chief Mbakwe who ruled a larger Imo State tarred many roads, built many industries and hotels in his first term. The beauty of it all is that some of the roads constructed by the Mbakwe regime are still standing strong. This is another area where the Ogboko-born governor should match Dee Sam.
Posted on: Sat, 14 Sep 2013 18:53:13 +0000
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